Program Profile

Veteran and Provider Perspectives on Telehealth for Vocational Rehabilitation Services

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Background: Establishing employment for veterans with disabilities is a common goal for rehabilitation, but there are barriers to accessing vocational services. Telehealth has been developed to increase access, especially for rural veterans with disabilities. Providing access and training in the use of videoconferencing for vocational rehabilitation (VR) for both staff and their clients may improve access and timeliness of vocational services while reducing travel costs and barriers.

Methods: This program evaluation of a field-initiated clinical demonstration project was conducted at 2 Veterans Affairs medical centers in the Southeast United States. Data were collected during the first year of a teleconference-provided vocational program (VRtele). Data on demographics, primary diagnosis, and VR usage were collected from patient records. Veterans completed satisfaction surveys, and qualitative interviews were obtained from VR staff and their patients.

Results: A total of 22 veterans participated in the first year of the program. On average, 63 miles of travel were saved per visit. Survey data indicated high levels of satisfaction with VRtele. Interviews indicated that flexibility, time saved, and increased interactions were strengths of VRtele. Challenges identified by staff included patients’ lack of familiarity with technology and change in quality of interaction. Veterans also reported a learning curve due to technology concerns.

Conclusions: Both VR providers and their patients recognized the benefit of VRtele. Factors that affect success include technology troubleshooting and supportive leadership to facilitate implementation. As this program evaluation was limited by sample size and lack of a comparison group or outcome data, further research on the acceptability and effectiveness of VRtele is needed.


 

References

Vocational rehabilitation (VR) interventions are offered through Compensated Work Therapy (CWT) as part of clinical care in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) to improve employment and quality of life outcomes for veterans with life-altering disabilities.1–5 CWT vocational services range from assessment, vocational counseling, and treatment plan development to job placement, coaching, and follow-along support.1 However, many veterans receive care in community-based clinics that are not staffed with a VR specialist (VRS) to provide these services.6–8 Telehealth may increase patient access to VR, especially for rural veterans and those with travel barriers, but it is not known whether veterans and VRS would find this to be a satisfactory service delivery method.8,9 This paper examines veteran and VRS provider perspectives on VR provided by telehealth (VRtele) as part of a VHA clinical demonstration project. To our knowledge, this is the first report of using real-time, clinic-based VRtele.

Methods

The Rural Veterans Supported Employment Telerehabilitation Initiative (RVSETI) was conducted as a field-initiated demonstration project at 2 US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical centers (VAMCs) in Florida between 2014 and 2016: James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital & Clinics (Tampa) and Malcom Randall VAMC (Gainesville). This retrospective evaluation of its first year did not require institutional review board approval as it was determined to be a quality improvement project by the local research service.

The patient population for the project was veterans with disabilities who were referred by clinical consults to the CWT service, a recovery-oriented vocational program. During the project years, veterans were offered the option of receiving VR services, such as supported employment, community-based employment services, or vocational assistance, through VRtele rather than traditional face-to-face meetings. The specific interventions delivered included patient orientation, interview assessment, treatment plan development, referral activities, vocational counseling, assessment of workplace for accommodation needs, vocational case management, and other employment supports. VR staff participating in the project included 2 VR supervisors, 1 supported employment mentor trainer, and 5 VRSs.

Each clinic was set up for VRtele, and codes were added to the electronic health record (EHR) to ensure proper documentation. Participating VRSs completed teleconferencing training, including a skills assessment using the equipment for real-time, high-quality video streaming over an encrypted network to provide services in a patient’s home or other remote locations. VRS staff provided veterans with instructions on using a VA-provided tablet or their own device and assisted them with establishing connectivity with the network. Video equipment included speakers, camera, and headphones connected to the desktop computer or laptop of the VRS. A patient’s first VRtelesession was conducted in person at the VAMC to assure veterans were able to use the technology and to identify and resolve any problems.

Demographic data, primary diagnosis, VR usage data, and zip codes of participating veterans were extracted from the EHR. Veterans completed a 2-part satisfaction survey administered 90 days after enrollment and at discharge. Part 1 was composed of 15 items, most with a 5-point Likert scale (higher ratings indicated greater satisfaction), on various aspects of the VRtele experience, such as audio and video quality and wait times.10 Part 2 addressed VR services and the VRS and consisted of 8 Likert scale items with the option to add a comment for each and 2 open-ended items that asked the participant to list what they liked best and least about VRtele.

Semistructured, in-person 30- to 60-minute interviews were conducted with VRSs at the initiation of VRteleand audio-recorded with permission. An interview guide consisting of 14 questions was used to obtain data on caseload, VRtele set up, use of teleconferencing equipment, and veteran access to VR services.

After ≥ 2 months of VRtele use, researchers observed a session with each participant to obtain qualitative data from all participants on their VRtele experience. Using an observation form with open notes, data were collected on the use of the videoconferencing technology, the quality of the VRtele session, and reactions of veterans and their VRS. Following the observation session, both the VRS and the participating veteran were interviewed separately using a 9-question interview form to obtain data on the use of the technology in general and for VR. Interviews were audio-recorded with the permission of the VRS and veteran and transcribed for analysis.

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